French restaurant shuts doors in Wilkes-Barre

Mark Moran / the citizens' voice
Southside Bistro on South Main Street in Wilkes-Barre had its last day of business Sunday.

WILKES-BARRE - A new French restaurant in Wilkes-Barre has closed and its owner is back in France.

Southside Bistro, 264-268 S. Main St., had its last day of operations Sunday. Owner Isabelle Garcia said in an email that she returned to France to care for her severely ill mother and does not know if she will return.

Garcia said she did not have an answer about what would happen to people who purchased gift certificates at the now-shuttered restaurant at South Main and Ross streets. As recently as Jan. 22, the restaurant's Facebook page invited diners to make reservations for Valentine's Day, but a paper sign on the front door said the establishment was closed.

"I loved opening it and I am sorry I am not there anymore to run it," Garcia wrote. "This is a real sad and unfortunate event."

Sam Johnson, 45, of Weatherly owns the building that was home to Southside Bistro. He said he is now stuck with the lease on the restaurant and expects to lose about $100,000 he loaned Garcia. Johnson said a bank has a lien on equipment Johnson gave to Garcia, which he may buy back.

"She basically decided in an email that she's not coming back from France. She has to stay and she's basically giving up the business unless someone is going to take over," Johnson said.

The former chef at Southside Bistro, Gwen Le Pape, is now in New York City, he said.

Asked if she had any legal or banking troubles, Garcia wrote that "the only issue now will be to properly close the restaurant."

Asked about the business' profitability, she wrote "As you probably know a restaurant does not make profit in the first few months after opening."

Johnson said he didn't have firsthand knowledge of Southside Bistro's financial situation.

"I'm not in charge of the books. I'm just the landlord," he said. "All I can say is based on what I saw and how busy they were, I can't see how they were not making money. It's a shame that whatever happened with her happened."

Johnson said he spent about $200,000 refurbishing the building's first floor. Garcia said a bank loan also paid for some of the renovations. The restaurant opened October 2013 in a space that formerly held a bank. The rest of the building houses 16 apartments.

"It's not like I lost all that money. I took a raw space and turned it into a restaurant. It's definitely re-rentable for what it is," Johnson said.

Johnson said he has no specific plans for a new tenant now but wants to bring another business to the building.

"Once the dust settles with the bank and her exiting the space, I look to release it to hopefully another restaurant owner," he said.

bwellock@citizensvoice.com

570-821-2051, @CVBillW

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